The present invention is directed to bicycle wheel hubs and, more particularly, to a bicycle wheel hub with removable flanges.
Bicycle wheels usually have a hub, spokes that are hooked onto the hub and arranged in more or less radial fashion, a rim that is supported by the spokes, and a tire that is mounted on the rim. The hub has a hub axle that is non-rotatably fixed to a frame and a hub shell that is rotatably supported by the hub axle. This hub shell usually has a cylindrical hub unit and a pair of annular flange members that are fixed at either end of the hub unit. Spoke holes are formed at equidistant intervals in the peripheral direction in the flange members in a number corresponding to the number of spokes. Holes are also formed in the rim in a number corresponding to the number of spokes. With this type of wheel, the number of spokes linking the rim and the hub is selected according to the preference of the user, the intended application of the wheel, and so on. For example, wheels with 12, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36, 40, and 48 spokes have been used in the past. Conventionally, separate hubs and rims are manufactured to accommodate the desired number of spokes, even for wheels having the same size.
Because of the customized nature of the hubs and rims used for different numbers of spokes, a separate hub and rim must be purchased if the rider decides to change the number of spokes on the wheel. For instance, when the wheels of a bicycle used for cross-country racing are to be changed to downhill racing wheels, the hub will have to be replaced if the new wheels have a different number of spokes. Furthermore, if the spoke holes in the spoke flanges are damaged, the entire hub has to be replaced even if the other portions are still usable. This creates a financial burden on the rider, thus making is difficult for the rider to accommodate different riding situations.